


Loving, In Your Language

by sithmarauder



Category: The Terror (TV 2018)
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M, Period-Typical Homophobia, Somebody Lives/Not Everyone Dies, soft? soft.
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-30
Updated: 2020-01-30
Packaged: 2021-02-27 07:28:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 384
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22483378
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sithmarauder/pseuds/sithmarauder
Summary: Edward’s family all but disowns him when they at last discover why he keeps refusing all his mother’s attempts at matchmaking.
Relationships: Thomas Jopson/Lt Edward Little
Comments: 2
Kudos: 43





	Loving, In Your Language

**Author's Note:**

> Just a short piece that I couldn't get out of my head while I was trying to work on a factum. [I originally posted it on tumblr](https://empirics.tumblr.com/post/190522850246/edwards-family-all-but-disowns-him-when-they-at), but I decided to clean it up a bit and put it here, too. I can't vouch for its quality, but I can say these two have been taking up an inordinate amount of space in my mind lately, which is terribly rude.

Edward’s family all but disowns him when they at last discover why he keeps refusing all his mother’s attempts at matchmaking, their tongues shackled only by the shame they believe the truth would cast over them. The shadow of their decision lurks in Edward’s eyes for months, dogging his footsteps, but the one time Thomas asks—with a false casualness he does not feel, occupying his hands with familiar, menial tasks—Edward fixes him with a look of such intensity that he stills.

“Tom,” Edward says, and Thomas, caught in the weight of that gaze, can only stand still as Edward approaches; can only swallow as Edward lifts his hand and presses cold lips to the skin there, the hard pit of dread that has been building in his chest easing slightly at the gesture. “We have seen and survived something beyond the comprehension of the people here,” Edward murmurs. “I will not let their small-mindedness ruin what we have built.” Thomas exhales, his memories taking him back to the arctic, to the world of endless fear and white and cold that had been theirs for so long. Edward smiles faintly. There is a hint of sadness in his eyes, but with it is an accompanying softness and a love that Thomas knows must be reflected in his own.

“Tom,” he repeats, but Thomas doesn’t answer, instead using his other hand to draw Edward forward so that he can press their mouths together in a kiss that is no less gentle or meaningful for its briefness. He strokes Edwards’ whiskered cheek with his thumb and thinks of Edward’s family, the family he’s only met once but whose coldness reminded him of the terror on the ice; of his own family, the family he has not yet seen since their return; and finally, of the family they had forged on the ice, which now includes the man in front of him, who has become the centre of the life Thomas has fought so hard for.

_I love you_ , he wants to say, opens his mouth to say it, but Edward just kisses him again, drawing him impossibly close until his hands can slip around Thomas’ waist, until the ice and the cold is but a distant memory.

He has all the warmth he needs now.

**Author's Note:**

> I might turn this into a longer piece someday, time permitting, but if anyone else wants to I will very likely love you forever. I can also be found on [tumblr](https://empirics.tumblr.com) where I spend a lot of time murmuring about history and how little I enjoy tort law, and taking prompts in between CBs.


End file.
